by Madyson Grey
“Now I know why I have always thought of you as my mama,” Victoria said. “I thought of Marian as Mother, but you as Mama. You always treated me more like I thought a mother should treat her child. Marian was so stiff and cold with me. She tried hard to make me over in her image, and to be a proper lady to fit into her social circles. I tried to comply, because I wanted to please her and I was taught to be obedient. But I really hated it. I much preferred being with Daddy or with you. You both let me be a kid, not a miniature adult.”
“I never knew that you thought of me as your mama,” Lena said, tears forming in her blue eyes. “I knew that you loved me, but not that you thought of me in that way.”
“I’m not sure I could have articulated that feeling back when I was a kid. It was just more of a sense of being loved and being treated like other kids said their moms treated them,” Victoria said.
Victoria turned to look at Rafael and said, “Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that life could be so complicated as it has been ever since Daddy died.”
“Yeah, no kidding,” Rafael agreed.
“Excuse me a minute,” Lena said. “I have something you’ll want to see.”
She got up and went downstairs to her suite and soon came back with a manila folder in her hand. She handed it over to Victoria, who opened it. Inside was her birth certificate listing Marian Thornton as her mother, and David Thornton as her father. There was the hospital birth record with her tiny footprints on it, her hospital ID bracelet, and the adoption papers.
Victoria looked over each document carefully, reading every single word. Nowhere on the adoption papers was Lena’s name printed. Instead, there were words to the effect that the identity of the biological parents was sealed and on file at the adoption agency. But Victoria didn’t need to see them. She knew now who her birth parents were. Both of them.
“All I can say now is that I’m glad that Daddy really was my biological father. Although maybe it wouldn’t matter. He would still be my daddy, whom I loved very much, whether or not he sired me. But if it had to be one of them who wasn’t my biological parent, I’m glad that it was Marian, and not Daddy,” Victoria said.
Lena put one work-worn hand on Victoria’s smooth one and asked timidly, “Does this change anything between us?”
Victoria looked at her with a sweet smile on her face. “Oh, yes, Lena—Mama—it does!” she exclaimed. “Now I have a mama, my real mama. I’m not an orphan. You are my mama and I love you now more than ever.”
Victoria threw her arms around Lena and hugged her tightly. Lena hugged her back, murmuring in her ear the words she’d longed to say for twenty-six years: “My baby girl, my sweet baby girl.”
Rafael waited respectfully for mother and daughter to have their hug time, as he thought of it. When the two finally pulled apart and wiped the tears from their eyes, he told them that there was one more thing that would now change. The two women looked questioningly at him.
“What, Rafael? What else could possibly change?” Victoria wanted to know.
“Well, do you really want your mama being your hired servant?” he asked dryly.
“Oh, my! I hadn’t thought of that yet!” Victoria exclaimed. “Of course not! That just can’t happen.”
“Then what’s to become of me?” Lena asked in a concerned voice.
“You’ll stay right where you are,” Rafael said firmly. “Unless you want your own place, that is. Otherwise, you’ll stay right where you are. You can cook if you want to, and if you don’t, tell your daughter here that it’s her turn to cook. You’ll still have your income, so you can do whatever you want, but your time is your own.”
“He’s right you know, Le–Mama,” Victoria said. “Oh, boy! I’m going to have to get used to calling you Mama now. But I couldn’t possibly have my mama working for me as a housekeeper and cook. That’s just not right.”
“But it’s all I know how to do,” Lena protested. “Besides, I enjoy doing it for you two. What would I do all day if I didn’t have some housework and cooking to do?”
“Anything you want,” Victoria said. “Go shopping. Go to the beach. Go anywhere you want. Read books. Draw. Paint. Crochet. Swim in the pool. Join a singles’ club and meet a handsome man and give me a new dad.”
“Hey, now, Girlie!” Lena said. “Let’s not get carried away here.”
The three of them laughed.
“Seriously, Lena,” Rafael said, “what do you want to do? Do you want to move out and get your own home and maybe a different job? Do you want to stay here? We certainly don’t want to tell you what to do, or make you feel like you have to make a decision right away. All we’re saying is that now that we know that you are really Victoria’s mother, we just don’t feel right about you being our hired help.”
“I know what you’re saying,” Lena said, “and I love you for it. Tell you what. Give me a few days to think on it. Meanwhile, let’s just leave things like they are. I’ll cook for you when you’re home, I’ll do the housework, but I’ll ponder my choices and let you know. How’s that?”
“That’s fair,” Victoria said. “And please know that you are completely free to come or go as you please. We would love to have you stay right here with us, if you want to. But if you choose to move out, we will support you one hundred percent. Also, no matter what your decision, we want to keep supporting you. Think of it as making up for all the pain and suffering you went through over the past twenty-six years. We can well afford it. Very well afford it. In fact, we should up it, shouldn’t we, Rafael?”
“Of course,” he agreed. “Cost of living raise. How does five grand a month sound? Not enough? OK, make it six.”
“My stars!” Lena exclaimed. “You must be joking! What would I do with six grand a month? There’s not that much work to do around this place to earn that kind of money.”
“You could always mow the lawn,” Rafael joked.
“Yeah, right!” Victoria said sarcastically. “Besides, that’s my pleasure.”
“Besides, this isn’t money earned. This is money gratefully given for the joy you bring to us and for the sacrifices you’ve made throughout my life,” Victoria told her.
“That’s right,” Rafael agreed. “You can’t earn a gift. I’ll set it up so the money gets direct deposited into your account the first of every month.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Lena said, tears threatening to spill over again.
“Say ‘I love you kids’,” Rafael instructed.
“I love you kids,” Lena parroted obediently.
“And we love you, too,” Rafael said as he leaned around Victoria to pat Lena’s hand.
“I don’t know about you two ladies, but I’m starved,” Rafael said. “It’s past my suppertime.”
Lena looked at her watch and gasped. “I should say it is past suppertime. Oh, my. I don’t have anything planned for this evening. What do you two want?”
“What say we take you out for dinner tonight?” Rafael said. “Sort of a celebratory dinner to celebrate this secret being revealed at last.”
“Great idea, babe,” Victoria said. “Where shall we go?”
“Lena, where have you always wanted to go out to eat, but never did?” Rafael asked.
“Oh, my. I don’t know,” Lena said, her brow furrowed in thought. “Let me think a minute.”
“You decide while I go to the bathroom,” Victoria said.
Rafael went out to the kitchen to get a drink of water while Lena wracked her brain trying to figure out where she’d like to go. A few minutes later the three met again in the family room to see what Lena had decided.
“Well, where shall it be?” Victoria asked.
“Since I can’t think of anything on the spur of the moment, and since it is getting late, let’s just go into Westlake Village to a place I spotted the other day when I was out by myself. It looked like a nice place. I can’t think of the name of it, but I remember where it is. Hopefully it will be a good place.”<
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“If that’s what you’d like to do, it works for me,” Rafael said. “Let’s get going.”
“Give me a couple of minutes to go get ready,” Lena said.
“Yeah, me, too,” Victoria added.
The two women went off in different directions, each to their own rooms to comb their hair, check their makeup, and the other little things women have to do to get ready to go places. In five minutes they were ready to go.
Rafael drove into town and then followed Lena’s directions to the restaurant she had in mind. It turned out to feature Mediterranean foods, which was new to all three of them. They had fun figuring out what to order and then hoping they would like what they’d ordered.
It was a good meal, and the three of them discussed all the pros and cons of Lena staying or getting her own place. They also talked about what Rafael had in mind for the 205 acres and two houses that he would purchase later that week. Rafael offered one of the houses to Lena. She would be close, but not right in the house with the newlyweds. She would think about it.
Chapter 2
Tuesday morning before Rafael and Victoria set out for their second day’s inspection tour, Rafael called Doug Bush, the real estate agent. After the customary pleasantries, he got right down to business.
“We would like to buy that two hundred and five acres and the two houses,” he said. “When can we meet?”
“Great!” Doug said. “I’m free for the next hour or so. Does that work for you?”
“Sure, I can do that,” Rafael answered. “Do you want me to come to your office?”
“Yes, that would be best,” Doug said.
“I’ll go to the bank first and get a cashier’s check. Was twenty-four five acceptable?”
“Yes, that’s fine,” Doug said.
Forty-five minutes later Rafael and Victoria were seated in Doug Bush’s office signing papers that deeded them the acreage and two homes that adjoined their new home. As soon as Rafael signed his name in all the right places, he slid the papers over to Victoria for her to sign.
“Say, how would you like to list Victoria’s former home?” he asked Doug, as the thought occurred to him. “That’s OK with you, isn’t it, honey?”
“Of course,” Victoria said. “It’s a great idea.”
“Sure, I could take it on,” Doug said. “I’ll need to go take a look at it, take some photos, and so on. When can we do that?”
“Well, our schedule is flexible. When are you free? Probably take a couple hours or so, including drive time,” Rafael said.
Doug consulted his day planner.
“Looks like I won’t have a block of time free until Thursday afternoon around four. Is that good for you?”
“Yeah, we can do that,” Rafael said.
Victoria jotted down the time in her day planner as Doug penciled it in, in his.
“Well, I think we’re done here,” Doug said as he closed his day planner and stood up.
Rafael and Victoria stood, too, and they shook hands with Doug, thanking him for his service.
“We’ll see you Thursday afternoon,” Rafael said as they started to leave.
After leaving the real estate office, Rafael and Victoria drove to the first office building that they planned to inspect that day. The building was one of their largest in LA. At twenty-three stories tall, plus a basement that was divided into a dozen apartments, it housed a variety of professional offices, such as lawyers, optometrists, psychiatrists, stock brokers, marriage counselors, and so on. The ground floor units housed several retail establishments—a beauty salon, a smoke shop, a jewelry store, and a gentlemen’s club.
Rafael parked the Chrysler in the parking lot off the back alley. He asked Victoria for the folder for this building. He wanted to look at it before they went inside, just to familiarize himself with the building. David Thornton had included a floor plan for each building he owned in its folder. It was a very helpful tool.
He held the floor plan so Victoria could see it, too, and they studied it for a few minutes until they felt comfortable navigating around in it. They spent the next hour and a half visiting each business and talking with each business owner. They also met with the building superintendent and discussed maintenance issues.
Last of all, they took the elevator to the basement to check out the apartments. They knocked on each door, introduced themselves to each tenant, and told them if they had any unresolved issues to contact them at the number on the business card.
The last apartment they came to was, according to the floor plan, the largest one. It was shown to have three bedrooms, while most of them had only one or two bedrooms. The man who answered their knock was a large, swarthy man who opened the door just a crack and asked who they were in a rather brusque tone.
Victoria was somewhat intimidated, but not Rafael. He had grown up in a different neighborhood than Victoria had. He introduced himself and Victoria as the building owners in a somewhat more forceful tone than he had been using. It worked on this man who suddenly opened the door a little wider and put a smile on his face.
“I am Antonio Cantu,” he said, extending his hand. “I am pleased to meet you, Mr. Rivera. Mrs. Rivera.”
“Pleased to meet you, too, Mr. Cantu,” Rafael said, shaking hands with him. “We are just checking in with each tenant in our building to make sure that everything is all right and that there are no serious problems. The former owner has passed away, and the ownership has passed down to us. Mrs. Rivera here is the daughter of the late owner.”
“My condolences on your loss, Mrs. Rivera,” Mr. Cantu said with just the right degree of sympathy and a brief lowering of his eyes.
“Thank you, sir,” she said.
“Everything here is just fine, Mr. Rivera,” Mr. Cantu said. “But thank you for coming by.”
“You’re welcome,” Rafael said. “If you have any problems that the building superintendent can’t solve, just give me a call. Here’s my card.”
“Thank you,” Mr. Cantu said. “Goodbye now.”
“Goodbye,” both Rafael and Victoria said together.
They rode the elevator back up to the ground floor. When they got back to the car, Rafael put the key into the ignition, then just sat there.
“What’s the matter, babe?” Victoria asked.
“I don’t know,” Rafael said, wrinkling his brow. “Something just didn’t set right with me at that last apartment. Antonio Cantu. He sure didn’t want us to come inside. He was keeping the door at just the right angle so we couldn’t see something.”
“There was a peculiar odor coming from the room,” Victoria said. “And where I was standing, I could see a mirror on the wall. There was a woman’s reflection in it. An Asian woman.”
“Really? I didn’t see that. I did kinda get a whiff of something odd. I figured it was just his cologne or something.”
Rafael and Victoria looked at each other in puzzlement.
“Make a note of this in the folder,” Rafael told Victoria. “We may pay Mr. Cantu another visit before long. I have a funny feeling about him.”
“Well, it’s not unheard of for a man to have a woman in his apartment,” Victoria said in a practical tone of voice. “And just because she’s Asian and he’s Italian doesn’t mean a thing. Do we know how many people are supposed to be living in that unit?”
“It should say there in the folder. The rental agreement should be in there,” Rafael said.
Victoria thumbed through the stack of papers that the folder contained. Down near the bottom she found what she was looking for and pulled it out from the rest of the stack.
“Here it is,” she said, skimming over the information written there. “Only one person, Antonio Cantu. Funny one man would want a three-bedroom apartment all to himself. He’s paying three hundred dollars more a month rent for that three-bedroom than he would for a one-bedroom.”
“It is odd, but to each his own, I guess,” Rafael said as he turned the key and started the engine. “I
may run a background check on him when we get home.”
“Good idea,” Victoria said.
After lunch they decided to go do the shopping mall over in Long Beach. It was a lovely afternoon and they planned to go walk on the beach for a little while after completing the mall inspection.
The mall was an ell-shaped two-story strip mall. They started in the mall office with the manager, introducing themselves to her. Then they visited each store and business. The last one, a unit on the west end of the ground level was an adult bookstore. They both raised their eyebrows when they saw what the business was.
“I wonder if Daddy knew that this place is here,” Victoria said. “I don’t know about you, but I’m not real comfortable renting to a business like this.”
“I’m not either, but at this point, since they’re here, we have no grounds to evict them until they give us a reason,” Rafael said. “You don’t have to go in if you don’t want to.”
“Yeah, I think I’ll stay out here,” Victoria said. “No, on second thought, I am going in. It’s my duty and I won’t shirk it just because I’m repulsed by the place.”
“OK, but you can slip out any time you want,” Rafael said, opening the door.
They went inside and asked the clerk at the counter for the manager. The clerk summoned him and Rafael gave him the same spiel he was giving everyone else. Then he told the manager that he was going to tour the premises. The manager looked a little nervous, but had no choice but to let him.
“Are you sure the lady wants to see the whole place?” he asked Rafael.
“The lady can decide that for herself,” Rafael responded.
“The lady will inspect her property,” Victoria said firmly.
They walked through the sales floor, and down a narrow dark hall that had cage-like rooms on either side. They were all curtained, so they couldn’t see inside of them, but they could guess what one might see if the curtains were opened.